Lake Balaton fishing, the fishing hot spot

The Balaton is the biggest lake of Central Europe (600 sq. kms). Itis 77 km long and it can be up to 14 km wide and has an average water depth of only 3 metres. You can find the following fish in the water: different types of carp (grass carp, silver carp and marble carp), catfish, pike perch, volga pike perch and many whitefishes. Now and then also eel.

For those who are inexperiences fishing tourists without knowing the lake we suggest you fishing from the shore. On grounds of the size of the lake fishing from a boat without any leader catching is hopeless. When fishing from the shore the north side is absolutely recommended not to mention the western area as the water depth can reach 2 to 3 metres from a distance of 50 to 100 m.

The south shore is extremely shallow and fishing is a bit hard as Lake Balaton has an absolutely monotonous soil structure. There are virtually no rises or deepening, so it is not easy to find stony areas. In the 1950s stone blocks were sunk at some places in the water - these should spawn to the pike perch as they serve a hiding place for this fish type. Today these are the more or less "fishing hot spots" in the lake. These places can be found only with radar which can be purchased at fishing stores. Some good places are also moles, thus in Siofok or in the peninsula Tihany, one must divide these places with a huge number of other anglers.

If you have a boat at your disposal, or you rent one, you should try the free water surface. In particular if you like carp fishing as they are caught regularly not from the shores.

Beside pike fishing you can carry on with other predator fish like Rapfen, these are caught primarily from moles or close to stone packets.

Catfish offers a great catch. Since the lake is shallow, there are a few places where catfish are the best known reside. Such is the the so-called "Tihany-ditch". Here, at the narrowest point of the lake, there is an up to 11 m depth. Other promising positions are inlets, such as Fonyod on the south shore

Our fishing tips

Do not forget that you have to buy a fishing permission or a ticket in order to fish on the lake. You can purchase a daily, a three-day, ten-day or a yearly ticket. These can be bought at fishing shops around the lake. You can fish with these ticket either from the shore or on the lake surface. There are reductions for children and for pensioners.